Mme. Charnier and Mme. Clementine Dufaut were the first two women to be licensed as Paris horse-cab drivers. Mme. Charnier is shown here with her whip, gloves and the heavy blanket drivers used to protect themselves (not the horses) from the elements.

Mme. Charnier, like her early colleagues, is obviously a mature, strong woman well able to cope with the rigours of cab driving. This suggests that whoever was behind the introduction of woman drivers wanted them to be competent and professional and not mere decorations for a publicity stunt.